Colombo Fort Magistrate Lanka Jayaratne today refused to issue a warrant through Interpol for former Sri Lanka Ambassador to Russia Udayanga Weeratunga.

The warrant had been sought by the FCID over the alleged financial frauds which occurred during the purchase of MiG fighter jets in 2006.

The Magistrate said that the warrant cannot be issued since Weeratunga was not a suspect and he was needed only to record a statement. A court case has also not been filed on the matter, the Magistrate pointed out.

The FCID had earlier requested a warrant, which was turned down on the grounds that the notice had not been handed over in a proper manner to Weeratunga, who is living in Ukraine.

On that occasion, the court directed the Foreign Ministry to hand over the notice to Weeratunga. However, it was later informed to court that he was not present in his Ukraine address.

The government is also accusing Udayanga Weeratunga of alleged "arms dealings" with Ukrainian rebels. However, Weeratunga denies these charges.